Amazon vs. Hachette Book Group

Has everyone seen the articles going across the interwebs, the Twitter and Facebook posts, etc. about the feud going on between Amazon and the publishing company, Hachette Book Group? If you have, what do you think about it?

For those of you who haven't, I will post a couple of links at the bottom of this post for you to get caught up, but for now, this is basically what is going on:

Amazon and Hachette could not come up with an agreement on pricing verses the amount of discounts that were going to be given. Amazon prides themselves on a few things. One of them being pretty fast shipping without the high cost, and the low prices of their books. From what I gather, Amazon is trying to get bigger discounts for Hachette books. The two sides are not agreeing, so what did Amazon do? A few things. At first, they were removing the buy buttons from e-books, then they were making shipping time up to 5 weeks. And then, the biggest thing in my opinion, they stopped selling books that were published by Hachette Book Group. Before they stopped offering them altogether, they were raising prices drastically. One book could be found on Barnes and Noble for $17, but when you searched for the same book on Amazon, it was found to be $25.20. Outrageous, right?

Childish? I think so. They can't come up with an agreement, so they do something drastic. Amazon is basically saying, "If you don't give us what WE want, we will take it all away from you."

Who is the real victim here though? Authors.

The people who chose and accepted to be published by Hachette Book Group are now losing their profits due to Amazon being so childish and removing their books. When more than one party is involved, there are always better answers.

My question to all of you, what is your opinion? What could have been done differently? Do you think they will be able to come up with an agreement? Do you think Hachette Book Group will have to give in?

Please let me know what everyone thinks.




Articles:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/authors-publishers-say-feud-with-amazon-has-escalated/2014/05/23/03bea8d6-e2b5-11e3-810f-764fe508b82d_story.html

http://seattle.cityandpress.com/node/7824182

Do You Read YA Novels?

Hello, everyone!

I believe a lot of us read different genres throughout our lives, but we always have one genre we always go back to. For me, I absolutely love YA novels/teenage novels. The Twilight Saga, Divergent, The Hunger Games series, etc. For some reason, I always go back to the same genre. I gravitate to though "Young Adult" section at the bookstores and libraries. Do you feel this way about a certain genre? Which genre is it?

My next question is, do you read YA novels? In case you are unaware, I am 26 years old, which is considered a young adult, but in the book world I think of YA novels as teenagers or preteens. Do you think the same way? Why do you suppose that we, who are older than the preteen/teenagers that the YA novels are "meant" for, want to always read them?

My reason for this post is because while I was reading my June addition of Cosmo, there was an article in there by John Green (Author of The Fault in Our Stars) about YA novels and why adults always seem to go back to those books time after time, and if we are too old to read YA novels.

My take: No, we will never been too old to read YA novels. They are interesting. Give you real life situations. They are emotional and powerful and for some reason, give you the warmth that other books do not seem to give. At least for me.

John speaks in his article (which could be read here) about pretty much the same thing I said. We will never be too old to read YA novels, and the reason we do is because we can relate to them. Sometime in our life, past or present, we have felt the way the young adults our YA authors write about. We have felt lost, confused, unloved, betrayed. Being able to FEEL in a book, is the best kind of book.

Do not get me wrong, any other genre can make you feel, and can have confusion, not feeling loved, betrayal, etc. But there is just something about a YA novel that gives it a different feel than other genres.

What do all of you think? Am I completely crazy, or do you think the same thing I do? Do you read YA novels, and if you do not, can you tell me why?

I am interested in hearing all of your thoughts, opinions and ideas!


Always a book worm,

Steph

Book Cover Reveal: Starlight Saga by Sherry Soule

BOOK COVER REVEAL

Today bestselling author, Sherry Soule has some exciting news to share with us! She will be publishing a brand new Upper YA / Sci-Fi romance series: the “Starlight Saga” with scorching-hot character chemistry, exciting suspense, and epic romance on June 26, 2014.

To help promote this interstellar love story, “LOST IN STARLIGHT,” Sherry is doing this fun guest post to share the news with fellow booklovers.

Please mark your calendars to buy your copy of LOST IN STARLIGHT on June 26^th 2014!

Read the first 3 chapters on wattpad: http://www.wattpad.com/43691448-lost-in-starlight-ya-syfy-romance-lost-in

VOLUME ONE: Starlight Saga

Is a star-crossed romance worth sacrificing your own life?

High school senior Sloane Masterson lives a quiet existence. She has awesome friends, gets excellent grades, and writes a column for the Haven Gazette. But her life goes from dullsville to bizarro when she witnesses mysterious loner Hayden Lancaster performing some freaky superhuman feats.

Like any good journalist, Sloane sets out to uncover the truth, and she’s not above stalking. But one look into Hayden’s remarkable eyes, and she’s crushing hard.

Even at the swoonworthy hunk’s insistence that hanging out with girls like Sloane is “off limits” by his strange family, she can’t resist him or wanting to solve the mystery.

Things get really complicated when a beautiful alien sets her sights on Hayden—and this devious girl’s not looking for a green card!

Now Sloane’s dealing with creepy government agents, über snobby extraterrestrials, and getting a crash course on the rules of interstellar dating. As their diverse worlds collide and the romantic sparks fly, Sloane must decide if Hayden’s secrets are worth risking her life to protect.

Places you can cyberstalk Sherry Soule:

Official Blog: http://www.sherrysoule.blogspot.com/

Twitter @SherrySoule: http://twitter.com/SherrySoule

Add to your TBR on goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20707942-lost-to-starlight

The First Phone Call From Heaven by Mitch Albom

Title: The First Phone Call From Heaven

Author: Mitch Albom

Where I Got It: My favorite grocery store --- Meijer

Why I Read It: I have read his books in the past, and loved them. I read this was also a great read, and of course wanted to check it out myself.

Rating: 5 book marks

The First Phone Call from Heaven tells the story of a small town on Lake Michigan that gets worldwide attention when its citizens start receiving phone calls from the afterlife. Is it the greatest miracle ever or a massive hoax? Sully Harding, a grief-stricken single father, is determined to find out. An allegory about the power of belief—and a page-turner that will touch your soul—Albom's masterful storytelling has never been so moving and unexpected.

Readers of The Five People You Meet in Heaven will recognize the warmth and emotion so redolent of Albom's writing, and those who haven't yet enjoyed the power of his storytelling, will thrill at the discovery of one of the best-loved writers of our time. [[ Blurb from Amazon.com]] 

Honestly, I don't have a lot of complaints about this book. It was amazing. From the first page to the very last, Mitch Albom has you completely sucked in. He starts off by explaining where the book takes place, which is Coldwater, Michigan. For those of you who don't know, I, and Mitch are both from Michigan. Reading a book where it is actually taking place somewhere I know about and/or have been, makes me feel like I can relate to the book even more. Albom then goes into tell us about some of the characters, and that they are receiving calls from their loved ones who have passed away.

How many of us can admit how nice it would be to still receive phone calls from those who have passed on? My Grandmother recently passed (this past January) and reading this book made me want to speak to her. But, that is not a bad thing.

There were parts of this book that gave me goosebumps. I kept wanting more. I kept wanting answers. I wanted to know what was going to happen next. And the best part of the book? I wanted to reach out and hug these characters.

This book will make you laugh. It will make you cry. And it will even make you angry. To me, a book that can make you feel multiple emotions, deserves 5 stars on that alone.

There was really only one thing with the book that irritated me a bit and that I didn't care for. That was that in the book, Coldwater was fictional. While it is a REAL Michigan town, Albom made up parts of the town that doesn't really exist. For example, Coldwater isn't a small town, and in the book, Albom has it as a small town. Also, it is not on Lake Michigan, in fact, it is a few hours away. However, this is just a minor detail and isn't important. In fact, one of the last pages in the book, after the story ends, Albom mentions that he made Coldwater fictional.

Overall, this is probably the best book Albom has written and I would definitely recommend it.


Mitch Albom's Facebook
Website
Twitter: @MitchAlbom

Where to buy:

Amazon
Barnes and Noble

Book Cover Reveal -- Mama's Ink by Rachelle Vaughn

Mama's Ink by Rachelle Vaughn will be released in April, and the cover has been revealed!

Synopsis:

As soon as she was old enough, Sadie Callahan left her hometown of Red Valley in the dust and never looked back. Now she’s a world-renowned photographer living in San Francisco with the perfect apartment, a successful boyfriend and a job she’s always dreamed of.

When Sadie receives a mysterious phone call about her mother, her seemingly perfect life comes to a screeching halt. She is forced to return to the town she never fit into and is confronted with tragic news that changes everything. If that wasn't bad enough, she runs into her high school sweetheart, Jared Ferrara. Jared is the ultimate bad boy with sleeves of tattoos, a leather jacket and, of course, a motorcycle.

While trying to keep her past at bay, Sadie finds out that most tattoos aren't skin deep.

 About the Author:

Rachelle Vaughn is the international bestselling author of several romance and erotica tales. Her first novel,Home Ice, consistently appears on bestselling lists years after its initial publication. Rachelle lives in California with her husband and their sassy calico cat. When she isn't writing, she enjoys watching action movies, cruising Pinterest for inspiration and cheering for her favorite hockey players. Visit her website at rachellevaughn.com.

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Book Cover Reveal-- Can You Guess Who?

Hello everyone!

I decided that I want to try and start doing some posts about upcoming books and when author's reveal their covers to all of us book readers!

My first cover reveal is going to be Jodi Picoult's new book, Leaving Time.

Most of you probably know Jodi is one of my top favorite authors. I love the way she writes, and how passionate she is in all of her books.

Leaving Time is her newest, which will be released in October of 2014. Below is the blurb about the book, used from Barnes and Noble.

For more than a decade, Jenna Metcalf has never stopped thinking about her mother, Alice, who mysteriously disappeared in the wake of a tragic accident. Refusing to believe that she would be abandoned as a young child, Jenna searches for her mother regularly online and pores over the pages of Alice’s old journals. A scientist who studied grief among elephants, Alice wrote mostly of her research among the animals she loved, yet Jenna hopes the entries will provide a clue to her mother’s whereabouts.

I am so excited to read this book. And, without further ado, here is the cover reveal of her book, which was originally revealed by Entertainment Weekly, and then on Jodi's Facebook.

Review: Aqua Blue by Marian L. Thomas

Title: Aqua Blue

Author: Marian L. Thomas

Where I Got It: Marian contacted me and asked me if I would review her newest book. I also reviewed another one of her books last year, which can be found by clicking here.

Why I Read It: Because the first book I ever read from Marian was very good, I wanted to read more by her. Plus, I can never pass up a book!

Rating: 5 Stars






"Best friends Aqua Blue and Haley, grew up together in the small town of Jackson County, Tennessee. Each had aspiring dreams to move to the big city of New York, vowing to stay friends what come may. But when secrets are revealed, their friendship is soon put to the test, and the strings that once were thought to be so strong, begin to unravel." --Excerpt taken from the inside, back of the book, almost to the very end.


I felt like the above passage was the best way to pretty much sum up this book. There are of course some other important parts and important characters that are in the book, but you can find that when you read the book, or do some research on it. ;-)

I absolutely loved this book. It was the kind of book that you just had to keep turning the page, no matter what you had to do... have to do homework? It isn't going to happen if you're reading Aqua Blue. Need to go to the store? Again, not going to happen when you're reading Aqua Blue. I stayed up many nights way past my bed time to read this book. Let me list the things I loved most.

• The characters. Every single one of them. Well, maybe except Jack. He was a little scary, and I was not sure what he was up to. However, every character I felt like I knew. I felt like I had a connection with them all. 
• The way the book was written. I like a book with short-ish chapters in it, or quite a few stopping points. I felt like having more chapters, but short chapters made it a very easy read. 
• The book was also broken up into parts. I like when books are like that, it makes me feel like we will get to see different parts to the characters and their lives.
• Detail. Most of the book had a lot of detail, giving you descriptions on how each person was feeling, what they were like, etc. That is one of the many things that make me feel so connected to characters.

There are so many reasons I enjoyed this book. Mostly, it was enjoyable because of the characters. They were all amazing and I just had such a connection to them all.

With all of that said, there were only two things that I did not really enjoy. One of them was that towards the end of the book, it jumped quite a bit. Aqua Blue and Haley both had grown up considerably and had been in New York for quite some time, then it jumps to part 4, which is fine. I just wished that there were a little bit more detail in how and why they got where they did, what all happened between first arriving in New York, etc. While there was a lot of detail throughout the book, I was just a little disappointed that these parts were left unsettled.

The only other part that I sort of did not enjoy (and I am sure Marian had a reason for it we do not know yet) was the tie in two her other three books she has out. Tying those books in, no matter how it is done is not a bad thing, but it was not really mentioned or more detail on why they were tied in. Again, though, Marian may be planning on telling us in the future with another book. Who knows. ;-)

I definitely recommend this book. It is a must read, and I promise you that you will enjoy the book immensely. If you read it, or plan to read it or when you do read it, please tell me what you think!






Helpful Links:

marianlthomas.com
Marian's Facebook

Where to buy her book:

Amazon
Barnes and Noble